Flight Delays: The Worst U.S. Airports

ByAmy Farley

Waiting in the Wings

This year, domestic flight delays are set to reach levels not seen since 2000. To help you navigate the country's increasingly congested hubs—especially so during the holidays—we've mapped out the 20 airports in the United States with the heaviest delays and noted the worst hours to travel through each. The best times to fly are, across the board, early morning and after 11pm. Below, you'll also find a list of domestic flights to avoid—those with the least chance of arriving on time.

Flight Delays: The Worst U.S. Airports

Percentage of all departures that are delayed at these major domestic airports, and the hour when the percentage of delayed flights is at its peak*

31%Philadelphia 6-7 P.M. 49%

27%Atlanta 9-10 P.M. 42%

27%Chicago (O'Hare) 10-11 P.M. 44%

26%Fort Lauderdale 9-10 P.M. 45%

25%New York (JFK) 10-11 P.M. 39%

24%Newark 9-10 P.M. 61%

24%Las Vegas 9-10 P.M. 38%

24%Seattle 8-9 P.M. 42%

23%Miami 9-10 P.M. 44%

22%Boston 7-8 P.M. 36%

22%New York (LaGuardia) 9-10 P.M. 41%

22%Washington (Dulles) 9-10 P.M. 33%

22%Charlotte 9-10 P.M. 31%

22%Chicago (Midway) 6-7 P.M. 39%

22%Phoenix 8-9 P.M. 32%

21%Baltimore (BWI) 10-11 P.M. 43%

21%Detroit 8-9 P.M. 32%

20%Orlando 6-7 P.M. 32%

20%Dallas-Fort Worth 7-8 P.M. 30%

20%Oakland 6-7 P.M. 33%

Hall of Shame

The five domestic flights with the worst on-time arrival records, plus five other popular routes that are also frequently delayed**

RANK

AIRLINE

FLIGHTNUMBER

ROUTE

% OF FLIGHTSARRIVING LATE

AVERAGE LENGTHOF DELAY

1

AirTran

576

Atlanta to Newark

73.2

85.2 minutes

2

ExpressJet+

3257

Rochester to Newark

73.0

65.2

3

Comair+

5442

Newark to Cincinnati

72.1

63.4

4

AirTran

340

Atlanta to Philadelphia

68.5

78.2

5

American

1468

Fort Lauderdale to LaGuardia

67.9

72.4

Honorable Mentions

16

Delta

222

Atlanta to LaGuardia

63.2

61.0

19

US Airways

11

Philadelphia to Los Angeles

62.4

61.5

20

American

2278

Miami to New York JFK

62.3

101.5

23

Delta

466

New York JFK to San Francisco

61.5

55.8

25

Alaska

329

Los Angeles to San Francisco

61.0

45.6

* A flight departing 15 minutes or more after the scheduled departure time is considered delayed. Figures are from January through July 2005 and are provided by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics

** A flight arriving 15 minutes or more after scheduled arrival time is considered delayed. Figures are from August 2004 through July 2005 and are provided by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics